Bad Luck Blake
by LordByronMudkippington
Summary: It was just a bit of bad luck, but in Blake's mind, it was everything in her life going wrong. With every round of bad luck, Ruby always seemed to pop up when she needed her. Maybe that was a sign.


Blake groaned and rolled over in bed. She could feel sleep escaping her, though she tried to yank it back down and let her doze off for another hour or so. It wasn't to be, however, so she reluctantly sat up and stretched out her arms, yawning widely. Trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes, she looked over at her alarm clock to see what time it was. 11:15. That felt... late, for some reason. Wasn't she supposed to be awake already for something important? She grabbed her phone off the nightstand, hoping that there would be a note that there jogged her memory.

There was a note staring right up at her from her phone, and it filled her with a sense of dread. Now she knew what this important thing was. Today was the release of a new book she'd been so excited to read. She'd wanted to get up early to make sure she made it there in time to get a copy, but her alarm had betrayed her by not going off. Now she was late. The bookstore was open, any shipped copies were already there, and she was still in her pajamas. This was unfortunate.

She threw the covers off and dashed over to her closet, nearly tearing her pajamas in her haste to get them off. Only her shame kept her from just leaving them on, slipping on her shoes, and driving to the store like a high school version of Ash Ketchum. She didn't care what clothes she was wearing besides that, so she just threw on the first outfit she could grab. Then she snatched her handbag from on top of the clothing drawers and ran out of her room, hustling down the stairs. That was too slow, though, so halfway down, she just jumped to the ground below. It stung her ankles, but being late stung more.

"Where are you off to in such a rush, Blake?" Her father called to her from the living room, looking at her curiously.

"Bookstore!" Blake called out while she rushed for the front door. There was no time to explain: she was already late enough. She flung the door open and pulled it shut, not even bothering to lock it as she ran for the car. Her parents could lock the door for her. Shoving her hand in her bag, she pulled out her keys and unlocked her car, throwing herself into the driver's seat and yanking the door shut. Her bag went flying onto the passenger's side, spilling some of its contents on the floor as she turned the car on and backed out of the driveway.

She drove a bit faster than the recommended speed limit, but in times of crisis, those numbers were just suggestions. It got her to the store in record time, and there was even a decent parking spot open for her. She wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. Maybe everybody had already left with every copy of the book the store had. She silently prayed that wasn't the case as she shut off the car and got out, locking it up and running into the store.

The little bell rung out as she walked inside, having to keep herself from outright sprinting over to the romantic fiction section. When she got there, she started running her thumb across the spines, muttering the author's last name out loud while searching for where in the alphabet this specific author would be. There were other books by that author, but not the one she wanted. Frowning, she looked around her surroundings, trying to see if there was a specific section for new releases. There was nothing. She even tried a quick perusal to see if it had been sorted incorrectly, but no dice.

There was still hope, though. A new release might be up at the front. She scurried over, scanning the racks for what she coveted. It wasn't there. She even spun the racks around and looked as hard as she could. To her utter disappointment, she didn't find it. The true confirmation came from the checkout clerk, who, when asked, revealed that they were unfortunately sold out. So that was that. Her stupid alarm hadn't worked, she'd overslept, and now she didn't get the book she was coveting. Sure, she could get it when they restocked, but that was small compensation to her. She wanted to read it _now_. With a defeated sigh, she trudged out of the store. What a miserable start to her day.

"Blake? Hey, Blake! Blake!" She turned to find Ruby walking towards her and waving excitedly. In her other hand was a cup of ice cream with a spoon stuck in it. As she got closer, Blake noticed that there was a plastic bag hanging from the arm that was waving. She must've been shopping on the strip here. "Were you buying a book?"

"I was trying to." She sighed again, crossing her arms and fully facing Ruby. "There was a book I was looking forward to, but I overslept. They were sold out by the time I got here." Next time she was going to set multiple alarms. She would not let this happen again.

"Oh! That new romantic book you were telling me about where I wasn't supposed to tell anyone?" Blake nodded, glancing away in embarrassment. Only Ruby knew of her fondness for the more loving side of literature. She was sure that she'd be teased to death if Yang or Weiss ever found out. "Here, take this." She shrugged the bag down her arm, catching the top with her hand and offering it to Blake. Maybe this was some sort of consolation prize for her being an idiot today. Curiously, Blake took the bag from Ruby and looked inside.

"No way..." She reached in and pulled out a book. Specifically, the exact book she'd missed out on. "Ruby, how... how did you get this?" She couldn't believe it. Ruby had gotten a copy of the book before they'd run out. How, though? And why? While she was the only person Blake was able to trust with her secret favorite genre of literature, Ruby never seemed all that interested in reading it herself. She was more into fantasy and action-oriented stories. This wasn't the kind of book she would normally read, so why had she bought it?

"I went to the store early so I could get a copy. I know you wanted the book, but I bought one just in case you didn't get it." She smiled sweetly while her reasoning completely flummoxed Blake. It was as if Ruby had known she would sleep in late. She'd bought a copy just on the off chance she didn't get one for whatever reason. What utterly impeccable timing. It was amazing enough that she felt like she couldn't speak. "Blake, are you okay? You're looking at me kinda weird."

"Sorry, sorry, I just... You didn't have to buy this for me." She definitely hadn't expected this. It was really sweet, but she couldn't just accept a free book. Slinging the bag on her arm, she reached into her handbag to grab some money. "Here, let me reimburse you-"

"You don't have to do that." Ruby cut in, putting a hand on Blake's to stop her. "It's a gift for you. I don't need you to pay me back."

"But-"

"Nope. It's all yours." Ruby grabbed the spoon out of her ice cream. "Besides, my hands are full. I can't fit any money in them." Blake was sure she was joking, but she seemed completely sincere. It didn't feel right, though. She'd planned on buying it with her own money that her parents gave her as an allowance. Maybe she ought to just shove the money into Ruby's pocket, but that might make her upset. She seemed really insistent on having it be a gift.

"Well, okay, if you're sure..." Blake smiled, holding the bagged book to her chest. That was a really nice thing for Ruby to do. She hadn't expected it, but she was grateful. Without Ruby's thoughtfulness, she would've had to wait an unknown amount of time to read the book. She'd always known that Ruby was a good friend, but this felt like a new level of goodness. "Um, would you like to come over and have a reading day with me? I'm really excited to get to read this."

"Sure! That sounds like fun! I'll meet you at your place, then." The two of them went into the parking lot, separating with mutual 'see you soon!'s as they split up to get into their respective cars. Sitting in the driver's seat, Blake put her new book on the passenger's seat, finding it difficult to stop smiling. She couldn't help herself, since she was feeling so grateful for what Ruby had done. It was always nice sitting in her room and just reading together. Even if they were reading different books, just having her there gave her a nice feeling. It was companionship without any expectations, and she found comfort in that.

Ruby was just a really great person.

* * *

The issue with the weather was that it wasn't an exact science. Sometimes what was supposed to happen just didn't. It certainly wasn't the fault of the weathermen, who were mere messengers of the meteorologists. They could only say the information that was given to them. While Blake could understand that from a logical point of view, she was still feeling frustrated and grumpy at the sight of rain pouring down outside the school. The weather was just said to be overcast, not a near flash flood. She was really regretting not bringing an umbrella.

Pressing her forehead against the glass, she watched the rain fall and commiserated her recent run of bad luck. She hadn't considered herself a lucky or unlucky person before, but she was starting to think that maybe she'd ticked off some vengeful witch or something. There'd been the alarm that hadn't gone off that caused her to miss that new book, but that had only been the beginning. It'd been small things like spilling water on her homework and tripping over a bump in the sidewalk in front of Yang, but those things added up. Now that she was being threatened with a rain-soaked time, she was starting to feel less than enthused about getting up in the morning. What'd she do to end up with this lousy luck?

"Blake?" Ruby popped up behind her, looking at her curiously. "What are you doing looking out the window? Don't you need to get home?"

"Yes, I just... didn't bring an umbrella." She'd never liked rain, or storms in general. It reminded her of when she was younger and was bemoaning getting wet after a sudden rain had hit. Her mom had tried to calm her down, saying that it was just water and that she wasn't going to melt. Of course she wasn't going to melt. She wasn't stupid. That didn't mean she liked getting wet, though. It wasn't controlled like the water from a shower head. This was wild and unwarranted. Sitting somewhere while all wet made her feel miserable.

"Wanna share mine?" Ruby pulled her umbrella from her bag, brandishing it like a sword. She may or may not have pretended it _was_ a sword and play-fought with Yang before. No judging. "I'm sure we can both fit under here!" Once again, in her time of inconvenience that she treated like the end of the world, Ruby rode in like a shining knight to save her from her own bad mood. She wasn't sure what she'd done to deserve all this bad luck, but she also wasn't sure what she'd done to deserve having such a good friend like Ruby.

"If you're sure." She was, so the two of them ventured outside together. The rain was a lot louder now, but at least she'd have some protection against it. Would they really both be able to stay underneath Ruby's umbrella and remain dry, though? It'd have to be a pretty big umbrella, and it looked normal sized to her. Regardless, she watched as Ruby pushed a button on the handle, bringing the umbrella to life. It opened up under the safety of the awning they were standing under, and Blake was surprised at how big the umbrella was. There did seem to be enough room for the both of them. The wrapped-up version of it hid its true power.

She stepped under the umbrella, her shoulder slightly sticking out as she tried to both remain under the umbrella and not shove herself entirely into Ruby's personal space. There was enough room, but she didn't want to make Ruby uncomfortable by being too close. She tried to shuffle herself around to find the perfect spot where she could walk and avoid getting soaked. It looked a bit weird, but she just hoped that no one else was watching.

"Blake, I think you're gonna have to get closer than that." Ruby giggled, amused by Blake's obvious struggles to keep out of her personal space. "You don't want to get wet, right? I don't mind you getting in close with me." Blake gulped, but she had a point. Besides, she was the one allowing her to get closer, so there shouldn't be any issues. With a nod of thanks, Blake got in closer, getting shoulder to shoulder with Ruby as the two ventured out into the rain.

While her shoes were instantly soaked, at least the rest of her body was safe from the rain. Hearing the rain so close to them, she grabbed onto Ruby's arm instinctively. The action brought a slight blush to her face. They were standing so close to each other right now, and it felt nicer than she expected. She looked down at Ruby, seeing if there was some sign on her face that showed her being in any way uncomfortable, but she was still smiling. It must've been okay then. Shyly smiling to herself, Blake held onto Ruby's arm through the entire parking lot. It made her feel like a princess, being protected from the rain by her noble knight taking her to her steed.

Once they reached her car, Ruby led her around to the driver's side, where Blake was able to pull out her keys and unlock the car. She put her hand on the door, but stopped herself from opening it. "Hey, Ruby? Would you want me to drive you home?" She knew that Ruby either got a ride home with Yang or took the bus, but maybe she'd be alright with catching a ride with her. It could be considered repayment for helping her get to the car in a mostly-dry state, though secretly she just enjoyed Ruby's company. Maybe it was like a 50-50 split.

"Really? Awesome! I'd super appreciate it!" Ruby beamed, vibrating in place as Blake got her door open and ducked inside. Once she closed the door, Ruby bounded over to the other side, opening the door before she pulled down her umbrella and practically threw herself into the car. It only took about three seconds for her to get in and shut the door, but her entire body had gotten a good dose of rain just from that minuscule time. It could've been worse, but it could've been better. "Sorry about the water."

"It's okay. It'll dry." Her car could get wet: that was fine. It didn't have feelings like she did. She turned on the car and started to drive out of the parking lot. Her driving was slower than usual, being careful with the hazardous conditions they were currently in. She'd rather the two of them get home safely than in body bags. That was why she was the one who'd drive people around in this weather, since Yang's version of 'being careful' was still going five over the speed limit.

Thunder started to rumble while they were on the road. It sounded like the rainstorm was becoming a proper storm now. Blake jumped without meaning to, her hands clutching the steering wheel tightly. She wasn't great with storms. There wasn't any tragedy and trauma in her past concerning them: she just didn't like them. Hearing thunder freaked her out for whatever reason, especially when she was on the road. She knew that if she saw lightning strike the road in front of her, she'd swerve out of surprise and blow up the car. Storms were just no good overall.

"You okay, Blake?" Ruby put a hand on her shoulder, gently squeezing it. Blake glanced over, but had to quickly look back at the road. Looking over for even a moment risked their lives, but she was grateful for Ruby's presence all the same. She was embarrassed that Ruby noticed her reaction to the storm, but still grateful.

"I'm okay, thanks. I just... don't really like storms." She tried to laugh it off, but she nervously twitched again when another round of thunder rumbled above them. Ruby didn't say anything more about it, and Blake couldn't look over to see what kind of expression she'd had after hearing it. For the rest of the drive, though, she kept her hand somewhere on Blake in an attempt to keep her calm. A hand on the shoulder was fine, but a hand on the leg made Blake feel way too warm for her own sake, and she had to desperately fight down the blush that threatened to bloom all over her face. All this from a mere touch of the leg. It wasn't just that, though. Not really.

They eventually reached Ruby's house. Blake parked in the driveway to give Ruby the least amount of distance to her front door. "Thanks for driving me home, Blake! I'd hug you, but I'm still drying off a bit." She wanted to say that she didn't care, and that she'd gladly accept a hug, but she couldn't get herself to say it. Instead, she just nodded, only able to get out a 'Bye Ruby' before she was out the door. She shut the door, popped open her umbrella, and waved to Blake before running for the house.

Blake stayed in the driveway, watching Ruby run into the house with a wistful look. It wasn't just the leg touch. She knew that it wouldn't be the same if someone else did the same thing. Well, it'd be embarrassing, but there wouldn't be more to it than that. It was because it was Ruby. She'd begun to start realizing that she was feeling things for Ruby: things that went beyond their previous friendship. It made her feel like a girl in one of her romance novels. She was at the part where she was beginning to realize her true feelings for Ruby, and like some of those girls, she didn't know what to do with those feelings. Whether it was appropriate to mention it or not was an unknown to her. She didn't even know if Ruby was all that interested in relationship in the first place. Her affinity for weapons always seemed more notable than her affinity for romance.

That didn't stop her from placing a hand on her cheek and sighing dramatically like she was falling in love for the first time. Ruby's existence really was the only good luck she had in her life right now.

* * *

So her luck hadn't improved any in the last couple of months. A week after Ruby had saved her from the rain, she had a run in with some sprinklers that decided the exact moment she was walking that way was the perfect time to activate. Things just went downhill from there. The next week she'd dropped her phone and cracked the screen, followed by an accidental fender bender a couple weeks after that. She'd gotten into a big argument with her parents after that, because her sudden spate of 'clumsiness' was costing a good chunk of change. It wasn't like she was trying to break everything! She was just cursed or something! Why did everything have to go so wrong?

It all came to a head one weekend when she was driving home from the mall. A truck in front of her was kicking up rocks with its stupidly big tires, and one particular rock was just big enough to cause her car an issue. It hit her tire, or she ran over it. Whichever scenario it was, it popped a hole in her tire. She didn't notice it at first, continuing to drive with just some minor grumbling about the truck. As she was leaving the freeway, however, she started to notice that her car was getting a bit more lopsided than it should be. She knew then what it had to be: the remembrance of the rocks combined with the now-lopsided nature of her vehicle in her mind, but she hoped against hope that she was wrong. Regardless, she pulled off the road and into a nearby parking lot to suss out the truth.

As she'd feared it was a blow out. Her right front tire was flattening in front of her eyes, becoming a mostly useless, dangerous chunk of rubber. She wasn't close enough to drive it home, so she'd have to call her parents and let them know what happened. They'd be so frustrated with her, even though it wasn't her fault. She didn't deliberately run over those rocks! Seething, she kicked at the tire, channeling her negative, cascading emotions into it. She kicked it repeatedly, but it didn't make her feel any better.

Tears began to prick at her eyes, so she hurried back into the car. As soon as she was in the driver's seat again, she couldn't keep her tears in anymore. She laid her forehead against the steering wheel as they started to drip down her cheeks. Soon she was openly crying, grabbing the steering wheel as her emotions got the best of her. She wasn't much of a crier: she preferred to keep those emotions inside as much as possible. It didn't suit her, or at least she didn't think it did. This was too much, though. All this awful luck was chipping at her emotional barrier, breaking her down piece by piece. This was the last straw. She couldn't stop herself from crying now, feeling so angry and frustrated and utterly miserable. It just wasn't fair!

She was going to have to call her parents, but she didn't want to. Having to hear how disappointed they were and how much money she was costing them with her lack of attention lately wasn't what she wanted. Especially not in the state she was in. She did not want her parents to know that she was crying. That would be horribly embarrassing. So she had to weigh her options. Who could she call that could help her with a flat tire? All she could think of was Yang. She could get over to her location and had the strength - and knowledge - to help. Having her hear her crying would be unfortunate, but having her parents know would be even worse. She'd just have to bite the bullet here.

"Hey Blake!" To her surprise, it wasn't Yang who answered, but Ruby. She'd definitely dialed Yang's number, though. "Yang's about to beat her high score, so she told me to answer the phone." That was typical. "So what's up?"

"I..." God, she didn't want to cry in front of Ruby. She wanted to seem cool to her, and crying like a baby was certainly not cool. "I needed her help..." She sniffled, trying desperately to quiet herself down. It didn't work as well as she wanted, sobbing loud enough that she was sure Ruby had to have heard her. This was the worst luck of all.

"Blake, are you crying?" Ruby sounded worried. She didn't want that. "What happened?" She was regretting the fact that she'd called Yang immediately. What she should've done is cried herself out, then made the call. It wasn't like she had anywhere to be any faster. She'd just been sure that Yang would answer her own phone. How was she supposed to know she'd be in the middle of beating some stupid high score?

"I got a flat tire, and I need Yang's help... Can you... Can you tell her, please?" She wiped at her eyes, sniffling again. This was so embarrassing... Ruby probably thought she was acting like a child. This wasn't supposed to be happening. She wanted Ruby to think she was cooler than this. This was so... lame. Ugh, thinking about how lame it was made her start crying again, which was even more lame.

"O-Of course! We'll be right over! Uh, wait, where are you?"

"I'm... I'm on that strip by the gas station next to the freeway. By the... uh, the game store that you and Yang like going to."

"Oh yeah! Okay, hold tight, Blake. It's gonna be okay. We'll be there as soon as we can!" She hung up, and Blake tossed her phone onto the passenger seat. Leaning back against her own seat, she sighed and closed her eyes, feeling so incredibly low. If things were going to get worse, how could she survive this constant torrent of bad luck? There was only so much she could take, and this really did feel like the breaking point.

She suddenly thought back on what Ruby had said. Did... Did she say _'we'_?

* * *

By the time Yang's motorcycle pulled into the parking lot, Blake had regained her composure. She'd wiped away all her tears and had finally stopped crying. Despite that, she wasn't looking forward to seeing the sisters. Usually she would, but not after crying on the phone with Ruby. Yang would obviously know too, since Ruby had asked why she was crying out loud. This was going to be so awkward.

It was awkward for her, at least. She got out of the car and waved to the sisters, who approached her with matching looks of concern. As soon as she was within arm's reach, Yang pulled her into a tight hug. She hugged her back, taking in a deep breath to try and not start crying again. It was just a lot, okay?

"It's gonna be okay, Blake. We gotcha." She pulled away, smiling. "Well, Ruby's got you. I've got a date with the bargain bin in the game shop. Good luck!" With a wave, Yang walked off to the game shop, leaving Blake standing there flabbergasted. Yang wasn't going to help her? That was what she'd called her for, though! She didn't even know if Ruby knew anything about fixing tires.

"Oof!" Ruby grunted as she hefted up the backpack she had on, hauling it over to Blake's car and setting it down next to the flat tire. "Alright Blake, let's get this tire fixed up! You've got a spare, right?"

"Uh... Yeah, I think so." She'd never really thought about it. She kinda just drove. Ruby bounced up and over to the trunk, ducking down to look under the car.

"Yup, there it is!" Ruby went back to her pack, unzipping it and reaching in to grab something. She came up with a screwdriver, which she took over to the back of the car. Getting down on her back, she slid under the trunk and started to loosen the screws that were holding the spare tire to the car's underside. Blake watched her work, having never known that Ruby was this knowledgeable about cars. In a way, it made sense, though. Ruby was good with her hands, and she loved machinery and various technologies. It was only natural that she'd pick up some good life skills along the way, even though she was just a teenager. Were they even supposed to know how to change a tire this young? Maybe she needed to learn how, now that her luck was buried in a ditch somewhere. This could happen more often.

She felt useless watching Ruby get the tire down and roll it over to the side of the car. There was nothing here that she was very familiar with, so she didn't know what help to offer. Ruby didn't ask her to help, but she felt like she had to do something, since it was her car that Ruby was fixing. She just didn't know what to do, so she kept standing there awkwardly.

Ruby had some strength in those arms. In her back too. That became obvious when she pulled out a car jack out of her backpack. How'd she even carry that on Yang's motorcycle? She put it under the car and started lifting it up, which would allow her to remove the blown tire from the car. The way she did it made it appear effortless. Blake looked at her own arms, feeling a sudden sense of inadequacy. This was also not fair for Ruby to be stronger than her.

She ended up doing nothing. There weren't even any words exchanged between the two. It was just Ruby grunting and muttering something to herself as she put the spare tire on, while Blake stood there uselessly. Maybe she would've been in the way if she'd tried to help, so there was that. That didn't make her feel better, but... no, it just didn't make her feel good in general.

"Alright, that should be good!" Ruby popped back onto her feet, cracking her back with a satisfied groan. Her hands were covered in dirt and her face had a noticeable sheen of sweat on it. It was clear she'd been working hard, and Blake felt guiltier at the sight. If she wasn't attracting bad luck like a magnet, Ruby wouldn't have had to bother helping her. "Now, it's just a temporary tire, so you'll need to go get a new one from Discount Tire or something. It'll cost a bit, though." She laughed, thinking about her initial reaction to how expensive each tire was on average. It made her glad it wasn't her non-existent car having a tire blow out.

"Right..." Blake sighed, running a hand through her hair. She was in real trouble now. "My parents are going to kill me..." She didn't know how much 'a bit' was supposed to be, but it obviously wasn't going to be cheap. Her parents were probably going to make her get a job now, which was something she'd tried to avoid for so long. Having to work and go to school sounded like such a stressful time. Stupid truck and its stupid rocks and her stupid luck and her stupid life...

"Hey, it'll be okay." Ruby sidled up next to Blake, taking her hand and holding it reassuringly. "I'm sure they'll understand that it wasn't your fault. These things happen." Blake sniffled again, feeling the tears threatening to come back. Why was Ruby such a nice person? It felt so wonderful to have someone like Ruby in her corner, but now she was feeling like such a drag on her. All this bad luck was just making it so Ruby had to go out of her way to help. Why couldn't she help herself in these situations? She'd never felt less independent in her life.

"I'm so sorry, Ruby." The tears did start to fall again, exactly as she'd feared. She suddenly wrapped Ruby up in a tight hug, more to hide her crying from her than anything. Obviously Ruby could hear her sobs, but it felt worse in her mind to have her actually see it. It would make it so much more unfortunately real. "I'm having such rotten luck, and you have to keep bailing me out. It's such a waste of your time-"

"Hey, don't say that. It's not a waste of my time." Ruby pulled out of the hug, which allowed her to see the tears falling down Blake's face. She smiled sympathetically, wiping the tears from her eyes as Blake looked anywhere else. "I like being there for you. It's never bad to spend time with you." Blake finally looked her way, and Ruby gave her a thumbs up. "I'll protect you from all bad luck, okay? Just consider me your personal talisman!"

"Ruby..." Blake wiped hurriedly at her eyes, hugging Ruby again. "You're such an amazing person. You really are, and you mean so much to me. Thank you... Thank you so much..." Ruby hugged her back, smiling brightly. She'd never considered helping Blake to be a chore, or frustrating. It's something she'd do for all the people she cared about, but... but especially for Blake. At that point, Yang came out of the game store, finding the two girls in a tight embrace. Grinning from ear to ear, she quirked an eyebrow Ruby's way. In turn, Ruby gave her a thumbs up while mouthing 'Not yet!' at her. Nodding, Yang held up five fingers, then ducked back into the shop.

"You'll get through this bad luck. I know it! There'll be good luck for you real soon, guaranteed!"

"Really?" Ruby nodded. "Well, then... What if I said that I liked you?" She'd had no intentions of letting Ruby know how she was starting to feel about her when she woke up that day. Her heart had always been a closely guarded organ, and her constant dalliance into the romantic side of literature left her wanting a relationship that would last. She couldn't just have a fling with any person that caught her eye. They had to be special, and it had to be the right time. She had to be sure that if someone became that special to her, they would reciprocate her feelings. While she'd begun realizing that she was starting to feel certain feelings for Ruby, there hadn't been a moment where she felt that those feelings were mutual. This moment, though... Seeing Ruby's smile, and her assurance that good luck would be hers real soon... It felt like a sign that she had to pursue.

"Well... Do you mean that you like me, or that you like like me?" Ruby grinned at the sudden exasperated look on Blake's face. That was worth it.

"Ruby..."

"I'm joking, I'm joking. But, if you said that, then I would say that I like you too." She smiled, grabbing hold of both of Blake's hands. "I would say that I like you a lot." Blake had been correct, then. That was the sign she needed, and following it had led her to what appeared to be reciprocated feelings. For the first time since this whole ordeal with the car had started, she felt a sense of relief. She could even smile now, realizing that Ruby was right. It wasn't all bad luck. There was some very important good luck now staring her in the face. If anything, it at least proved that Ruby was a walking, talking good luck talisman. A talisman that liked her too. It was definitely the emotions talking, but this felt like the happy endings that she read in her books.

"Then I'll say it. I like you, Ruby. I really do." For the third time, she pulled Ruby back into a hug, burying her nose in Ruby's hair. This felt like the good luck she'd been talking about. She didn't have to dwell on all the stuff that had been happening to her lately, or worry so much about having to tell her parents about what had happened. Having somebody like Ruby at her side put all of those things into perspective. She could get through this. She'd just needed Ruby to help her focus properly.

"I like you too, Blake." Wrapped up tight in a hug, Blake again didn't see Yang pop out of the store to check on how things were going. Ruby couldn't keep herself from smiling, giving Yang a double thumbs up this time. Yang pumped her fist triumphantly, shooting her finger guns Ruby's way. It'd been Ruby's idea for Yang to drop her off and then go elsewhere so that she'd be the one to help Blake out. Overall, it looked like that had been a success. In a way, she could say that there'd been some good luck within all that bad luck. "I really do."


End file.
